A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Well, I’ve tried one and you still ain’t gonna convince me that I need scented nail polish.  Infact, if anything… the scent gave me a low-grade headache.  Me no like and I sniffed my fingers.  Once.  It made me feel like a pervert.

Scent-aside, Revlon’s Peach Smoothie is an adorable colour.  I can’t decide whether it makes me want to snuggle in a cable knitted jumper or go lick an ice-cream.  It transcends seasons with its peach loveliness.  Depending on your skintone you may also find this making a good nude shade.

It’s a little sheer and needs 3 full coats to avoid a VNL but I’ll forgive that because it’s a quick-dryer.  It contains a very pretty gold sparkle which isn’t quite as prominent as I would like.

Revlon Scented Nail Enamels are priced at £6.49 and available from Boots.com

* pr sample

I don’t do French Manicures.  I love how they look all polished and pretty but they’re a pain in the proverbial backside for someone as OCD as me to get right.

Having said that, I spent a couple of hours attempting one whilst rotting my brain watching Living +1 the other day.  It was in aid for a guest post on another site that never went ahead and rather than waste my hard work, here it is!

Apologies if it’s a bit “teaching your grandmother to suck eggs”, the brief was to share French Manicure tips and this is the best but least yawn-inducing one I know!

After many years, it’s time to accept that some things will remain forever out of reach. Those Boyzone tour tickets, a bit-part in Friends and that pair of Clarks Magic Steps.  Up until a few years ago I’d have swapped all of ’em for the ability to give myself a pretty French Manicure!

I’d attempted it before with those fiddly sticker guides but they always wound up stuck to everything except my nails and if I did manage to attach one, it was wonky.

When I first discovered that professionals painted the tips ‘freehand’, I was filled with both a mixture of admiration and disappointment as I realised that I’d never own a steady-enough hand for that kind of artistry. But then I learned the secret…

Paint the ‘smile line’ (that’s the proper expression for the tip) with a white polish of your choice, trying to follow the natural line the best you can… then (and here’s the clever bit), cheat!

Take an old lip or eyeliner brush dipped in some nail polish remover and making tiny circular strokes, craft the perfect crescent! The remover will dissolve those tell-tale wobbles that give away your amateur skills! Who says cheats never prosper?

How’s your French Manicure skillz?  Do you bother with them?

My first Deborah Lippmann glitter polish.  It feels like every iconic DL polish comes with it’s own story firmly entrenched in popular culture.  Glitter in the Air was created by Deborah after she had watched Pink’s performance at the 2010 Grammy Awards (if you search on You Tube you can find it).

The most important thing you should note is that in the above swatch, I have LAYERED the Deborah Lippmann polish over Essie’s Sag Harbor.  The polish on my bare nail is VERY sheer… not a good look over yellow-stained tips.  I wanted you to be able to appreciate the glitter without the distractions from my ugly nails.

So again, I repeat… even with three coats… you will be able to see your own nail beneath Glitter in the Air unless you layer it over another colour.  Got that?  Right.

The overall effect of the mani reminds me of a baby’s birthday party… it’s ethereal, light, delicate and sunny.  A true feel-good polish for the playful amongst you.  It’s limited edition for Spring 2011 and has already disappeared from the website so if you want it?  Better get down to HoF fast!

£16 for 15ml at House of Fraser.  It’s undoubtedly pretty but has a hefty price tag to match.

* press sample

Butter London’s Founding Creative Director, Nonie Creme was on a flying trip to the UK earlier in the month and I was excited to get the opportunity to see her for a chat about the upcoming Fall collection and preview the shades…

Frequently looking to the catwalks for nail inspiration, Butter London’s Autumn/Winter 2011 collection is no exception.

Nonie Creme says of her new collection:

“My inspiration was a variation on jewel tones.  Imagine taking a traditional jewel tone palette, then moving each shade about two notes to the left, this means a garnet instead of a ruby, a dirty teal instead of a sapphire and an olive or patina gold instead of a brassy or yellow tone.”

The Limited Edition shade No More Waity, Katie finds itself in the main lineup and I’m very pleased to see Knees Up (one of my enduring BL faves) put in a reappearance.  Wallis, Bluey and Toff are all-new shades for the season.

Wallis

Inspiration: In honour of the Saucy Yank who ran away with the King’s heart.
Detail: A tarnished, metallic, olive gold, as mysterious and regal as its namesake.

Bluey

Inspiration: Vintage British slang for a pornographic film.  Ah, the good ‘ol days.
Detail: A slightly metallic dark peacock blue, perfect for fashionable birds.

Toff

Inspiration: A slightly derogartory name for a member of the British upperclass.
Details: A darker, dustier, brownish variation on rose pink.  Stop to smell them.  The roses, not the toffs.

No More Waity, Katie

Inspiration: One day my prince will come, and I will wrap him around my tiny, sparkling finger.
Detail: A soft griege littered with lilac glitter for the perfect marriage of fashion and fun.

Knees Up

Inspiration: A smashing metallic red for getting smashed in.
Detail: Brit slang for a drunken party.

Butter London A/W 2011 will be available instore at Harvey Nichols and online at The Powder Rooms.  Priced £12.00

What do you think of the new collection?  Any must-haves, disappointments or “mehs”?  Stay tuned later in the week for my interview with Nonie!

An oldie because my nails haven’t been this long for nearly a year but they do show off this gorgeous shade quite well (even if I do vainly say so myself!)

Butter London Scoundrel is a muted, warm lilac which sits nicely against cool skin tones like mine.  It’s one of my favourites from the brand and applies well without issues.

Look out next week because I’ve got a special interview with Butter London’s Founding Creative Director Nonie Creme and some Autumn/Winter 2011 previews for you!

Have a great Bank Holiday weekend party people! xx

How completely bloomin’ cheerful does this new Summer nail collection from Cosmetics A La Carte look huh?

The British company who are well-known for their bespoke makeup have released 5 bold shades that promise to extend this season’s hottest trends beyond our clothes!

Flash: An envious bright green
Inka: A warm shade of zesty tangerine
Viola: A tranquil lilac
Bonheur: A bold hot pink
Rhythm: A classic red go-to shade for timeless style.

Perfect poolside shades if ever I saw ’em!

The Cosmetics A La Carte Purely Floral collection are priced at £10 each and available to buy instore or online from their website.

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Do any of those shades set your fingertips a-quivering for Summer?

Is it a berry?  Is it a pink?  Can we call it a berry pink and be done with it?

Ciate Main Stage is a lovely rosy pink (I thought we were going with berry?) shade.  I do love pink… not for my clothes or things around me but chuck a pink lippie or polish at me and I’ll doll myself up quicker than Barbie would topple over were she made of flesh and bones.

As with most Ciates, the formula leans a little thick but gives great coverage.  Shown above without a top coat.

Ciate Main Stage is available to buy online from PowderRooms priced at £9.00

Oooh la la, American Apparel are serving us up a Summer scorcher with these new neon polishes…

A total of SIX new blisteringly bright shades are now available and I’m just a little bit excited by the thought of a Neon Red. (ok, a lot excited!)

The new shades are: Neon Orange, Neon Violet, Neon Green, Neon Coral, Neon Red and Neon Yellow.

Priced at £7.00 each and available to buy online or in store.  Up and at ’em!

The second shade that I was fortunate enough to preview from the upcoming OPI Touring America collection is this olive green number called Uh Oh Roll Down the Window.

Autumn/Fall’s OPI Touring America collection is set for release in the UK this August and sees an eclectic mixture of Summer brights and Autumnal earthy shades making the cut.

Uh Oh Roll Down the Window is an olive green creme with more than enough grey to keep it muted and work-appropriate.  The above photo shows two coats in hindsight, I should have given it a third for a perfect finish.  Wear has been solid and without issue as I’d expect from the professional nail brand.

The shade bears more than a passing resemblance to Nails Inc. Battersea Park which isn’t available to buy anymore but after receiving a few enquiries about it last year, you might be pleased to hear that you can get your hands on something similar..

O.P.I – Uh Oh Roll Down the Window will be available on our shores this August from LenaWhite.

…that got your attention didn’t it?

I’ve been using the Lumos High Speed Top Coat (and base coat) for a few months now, it’s a product that I hadn’t heard much about before.  It’s not cheap but I’m confident that you’re going to need it.

To be honest with you, it’s been *killing* me that I haven’t been able to blog about this sooner but I wanted to make absolutely sure that I didn’t go ahead and rave about this top coat only to watch it go the same way as my numerous bottles of Seche Vite a few months down the line – i.e. gloopy and unusable.

The Lumos High Speed Top Coat hails from a company called Famous Names LLC and a little bit of digging reveals that this company is owned by none other than Jim and Linda Nordstrom of Creative Nail Design fame.  These are people who quite frankly, know what they’re doing when it comes to nails.

So… why do you need it?

Because it appears to be the top coat we’ve all been waiting for.

~ It dries solidly in a couple of minutes… touchproof, smudgeproof.  It’s equally as good as Seche Vite in providing a quick-dry finish.

~ It applies effortlessly, floating over the nail bed without pooling and it doesn’t complain and drag if you need to ‘go over’ it to spread it a little thinner.

~ I haven’t noticed any shrinkage or colour change to my polish after application.

~ It doesn’t go gloopy after a couple of months (3 months of frequent use, still perfect).

~ It seems to last and last and last!

How about some cons to even things up a bit?

Well.. it’s a bit expensive at around £10/£11 a bottle… but considering the image above shows 3 months usage (yes, really – there’s barely a dent in it!), I think it still represents great value for money.

I’ve also been using the Lumos Instant Impact Bottom Coat which promises to increase polish longevity but in all honesty, I’m just not the best placed to comment on its effectiveness simply because I don’t suffer from chips and I rarely want to wear my polishes for longer than 4/5 days at most anyway.  I can say that I haven’t experienced nail staining from my blue polishes (a.k.a smurf nails) since using this, so on that score – it’s a good base coat.

The UK distributor for LUMOS are Sweet Squared, a professional-only distributor.  I bought my duo set from eBay in January (£19.50 for both) but a quick google search also reveals a few other stockists that will sell directly to consumers.

I’ll admit that when I first saw this shade in the bottle… I thought it looked a bit mauve/rose-granny-chic.  I’m still not sure it feels very Spring/Summer to me but it thankfully has enough raspberry in it to keep it looking modern.

Dahling *air kisses* is a pleasant enough shade.  It doesn’t knock my socks off but it does look good with most outfits and is conservative enough to wear whenever a red might be considered a touch too saucy!  It’s one of those shades that you’d reach for when you want a neat/polished look with little thought.

Application was solid with no issues to report… wear was average too… it’s an all round average kinda polish that will fulfil all your polish needs without blowing your mind.  And let’s be honest, we all need something we can depend on sometimes!

Dahling is available online from PowderRooms priced at £11.95.

Are there any polish shades that you can’t get excited over?

From the upcoming Fall 2011 collection, Touring America…

Personally, I eat Mainely everything but if you want your nails to look like the inside of a ripe, juicy watermelon this Autumn, you’re gonna need a bit of OPI’s I Eat Mainely Lobster* in your life.

I Eat Mainely Lobster is a shimmering almost-neon coral with enough pink in it to keep it looking good on cool skin tones.  It has a pretty under-stated shimmer that catches beautifully in the sunlight.

The image above is underexposed so don’t trust it for shade depth but I wanted to be able to capture the almost molten shimmer particles in this polish… aren’t they pretty?

Formula is quite thin for OPI but it packs enough pigment to have your nailbed covered in two coats.  It dries quickly but lacks glossiness which I’m putting down to the intense brightness of the shade… a quick lick of top coat rectifies that issue.

Overall, I Eat Mainely Lobster is an unusual but winning choice for Autumn/Fall 2011 and I can envisage many toes catching the last few rays of Summer sunshine whilst flashing this shade!

O.P.I – I Eat Mainely Lobster will be available on our shores this August from LenaWhite.

* press sample